Commonly Used Serial Terms

• Records created by the Acquisitions Dept. for on-order materials
  These will be replaced by a full record when the item is cataloged
• Records created by Circulation Staff for individual bound volumes of non-circulating serials being loaned on an individual basis
  These are deleted when the item is returned
• Records which migrated from the earlier Geac GLIS system during the GLIS to ADVANCE migration in 1994. They were created as brief, internal check-in records
  These need to be deleted or replaced with full bibliographic records

There is currently an active campaign within Technical Services to do away with these records. Many have been overlaid and deleted in recent months. When staff/users encounter ALL-CAPS serial records in the database, they are encouraged to report such records to Marie Spina and/or Everett Allgood via e-mail.

Analyzed

A serial or series in which the individual volumes/issues of the serial/series are each cataloged, and given the same classification number so the volumes shelve together.

Cataloged separately

A serial or series in which the individual volumes/issues of the serial/series are each cataloged, and each is given a distinct classification number based on the subject matter of the title. Volumes within such serials/series may or may not shelve together or even near one another.

Ceased, "Dead" or Inactive serial

A serial title which has ceased publication, either because the publisher/issuing body no longer perceives a demand for the content, or because the title has changed, resulting in a new record or records.

Copy set

Simly put, a "Check-in" record. Copy sets are Acquisitions tools attached to ongoing serials to reflect the required process of receiving and claiming incoming issues/volumes. Consequently, copy sets contain Receiving, Claiming and Holdings data generated from the Cataloging, Serials and Acquisitions modules of Geac. OPAC users see only the copy set's Receiving data. Copy sets are strictly used by the Acquisitions Dept. and those agencies actively utilizing the ADVANCE check-in procedure.

Item

The piece level of a title. With serials/series at New York University, this most often refers to a physical volume or issue, though it may also represent an electronic "volume," a CD-ROM disk, a videocassette, a microform, or any other physical or virtual "piece." Items are normally added for circulation purposes. Serials at the New York University Libraries typically do not circulate, so item records are added to facilitate searching by classification number -- this is particularly helpful to users searching a specific subject range, and for Collection Development purposes. Often with non-circulating serials, one item record may represent more than one physical piece. Summarized holdings of a title for a particular agency are displayed in the "Library has:" field (866 field).

Item history

The piece level of a serial record in the OPAC display. This screen reveals the barcodes attached to a specific copy set of a serial title.

"Library has:" field

The "Library has:" field summarizes the holdings of a serial title for a specific agency. The data in this field represents the most current inventory information Technical Services has received regarding the holdings of a particular title for a particular agency. The "Library has" field of a serial/series record may also include specific treatment information for a title (e.g. "Circulating serial," "Latest edition only," "Library's copy partially analyzed," etc., etc.)

Receiving history

As implied, this screen reveals Acquisition's receiving data for the title. By opening receiving history on a specific copy in the OPAC, users see which issues of a title have been Received, Bound and/or Claimed by a particular holding agency. The present status of an item may also be displayed, such as "At bindery," etc. The information displayed in the Receiving history is generated from a title's Copy set.